New Practices #42: Space Agency

The latest in a series of practice profiles looking at architects who have recently decided to go it alone, either through choice or redundancy

Space Agency, London EC1

Founded: Collaborating since 2008. Officially set up London office in March 2010

Main people: Peter Feldmann, Sarah Manning and Richard Lai

Where have you come from?Peter worked at UN Studio, Future Systems and Wilkinson Eyre. Sarah comes from Space Syntax, Sasaki Associates in San Francisco and 3D Media in New York. Richard worked at Aedas, both in Hong Kong and London.

What work do you have?We’re working on a wayfinding project for a large urban development in Cairo, Egypt; as a consultant to Zaha Hadid Architects; the brand identity for Le Pain Quotidien in Moscow; and a housing development in West Hampstead, London. We are particularly interested in spaces that intrigue our perception and change the way we want to use them – be it a residential project that is tailored around the way we live or a retail outlet that is based around the style of the brand and the experience of shopping. We like to take our clients on a journey to discover unutilized potentials in space that they may not be aware of.

What are your ambitions?The name Space Agency refers to our interest in the agency of space itself. We see the architect as an inventor of space. We aim to make design, and the real value added by design, apparent to the client.We come from a variety of backgrounds within the field where we each have developed expertise at different scales of space - from graphic design and interiors to architecture, urban spatial analysis and pedestrian wayfinding

This unique opportunity to simultaneously practice at different scales, and to allow design principles from one scale to inform our work in the others inspires us.

We see Space Agency as a multilateral and collaborative partnership of creative design professionals around the globe. We strongly believe that this diversity will provide us with a unique insight and momentum.

How optimistic are you?2010 has been a great year for us. We have recently opened our Hong Kong office and are looking forward to forming a San Francisco office. It is an era of being lean and mean and we have adapted to it. There are always ways to make our offer special.

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